The Murder of Jack Kroecker, Christmas 1968
Jack James Kroecker Jr. was born on May 1, 1945, and grew up in Parma, OH. His father, Jack James Kroecker Sr, was the vice president of Permold Inc, an aluminum foundry in Medina, OH. In 1963 Jack graduated from Parma High School, where he was a district wrestling champion. He then completed three years as a mathematics major at the University of Dayton before being drafted into the US Army in May 1968. He graduated first in his class at Army Finance School at Ft Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis, IN and took basic training at Fort Knox, KY. At the time of his death he was working in the finance section of Fort Carson in Colorado. Photo from FindAGrave. Jack, 23, spent Christmas Eve 1968 celebrating the holiday with a fellow soldier in downtown Colorado Springs, El Paso County, CO. They had driven there from Ft Carson in the friend's car. Jack was wearing civilian clothes. At about midnight on Wednesday, December 25, 1968, Jack returned to his friend's car and l...